Support NeoGAF

[Chindogg]

Well, I mean... when there are posts like this...

Ok that makes more sense. I didn't see that post.

However some of you are going totally buck for a $8 AC Adapter. I realize that's shitty and a dumb decision, but it's more in the "meh whatever" territory than the "this company can fuck itself I hope it burns into obscurity" like some of these posts.

Also, equating the memory card backlash to this is laughable. Sony got shit because their cards are insanely expensive, and no one was actively hoping Vita would fail. Some cats in here are acting as if Iwata pissed in their faces and want the whole company to burn for it.

I'm just sitting here chuckling at the absurd overreactions to the whole situation and anyone shrugging their shoulders like me are being accused of "defending an anti-consumer practice" when in reality we're just too apathetic to care about $4-12.

Not only scummy but also seems borderline illegal.

At times like this I wish someone from the government would step in to force Nintendo to include their proprietary charger. Someone from higher up needs to call Nintendo out on their blatant anti-consumer bullshit.

Weak excuse. They just want to charge extra. I hope this thing dies in a fire. People rationalizing from other countries should have been in a bigger uproar to stop this practice earlier.

Posts like this, for example.

 

[Neiteio]

Today on NeoGAF:

The sleepy-eyed peasants of Gafsville were slinging mud pointlessly in the fields, when the rooster crowed. "Time for a Ninty Direct!" The unwashed masses shuffled off to town square...

...and that's when everything went horribly wrong. The Reggolian warriors rode through town, swinging swords and slinging arrows.

"Oh shit, no AC adapters!" cried one Gaffer, an arrow sticking out of his jugular.

"No faceplates?!" cried another as his head was lopped off and rolled down the street, a wayward chicken chasing after it.

"C-stick camera control is the only N3DS functionality in MM3D?!" screamed another as he tumbled off a balcony while on fire and then exploded in a wheelbarrow full of crude oil that was to be slung pointlessly later that day.

*The narrator closes his book, adjusts his glasses and looks at the camera*

It was a rough day on GAF...

 

[:Motorbass]

Wait how do people have more than one adapter?

I have a DSi, a 3DS and bought a cheap USB cable with plugs for all DS models so I can charge them at once (I make music with them)

 

[Ninja Scooter]

$4 is still more expensive than some stupid preorder bonus costume or character skin that causes people to rage and scream "anti-consumer!" when a company like Ubi Soft or Activision does it. This is simply a tacky, shitty practice. I don't care how much a charger is to buy separately. People that are giving Nintendo a pass on this seem to be doing it simply because they are Nintendo.

 

[HardRojo]

I don't want to be forced to pay extra money for something I already own. Anyone that needs an adapter can buy one. Those who don't, won't have to pay extra for something they have no use for.

We've been past that point in the discussion already. You're not paying attention.
It wouldn't cost Nintendo much to mass produce those adapters, $2? $3? Do you think they'd sell the console for $201-$202 is the adapter was included? No, mark it up at the store for better profit.

 

[Triggerhappytel]

It's been like this forever in the EU. Pretty common for phones too.

Neither I nor my wife have ever bought a new phone that didn't have a charger in the box.

 

[Averon]

I don't want to be forced to pay extra money for something I already own. Anyone that needs an adapter can buy one. Those who don't, won't have to pay extra for something they have no use for.

These adapters don't cost these companies much. Maybe $3 at the very most. Nintendo wouldn't have raised the price to $202 if it had an adapter.

 

[big_erk]

No they're not lol

I know. There's like 4 or 5 in my house right now.

 

[prag16]

Not only scummy but also seems borderline illegal.

Let's not be ridiculous. It's definitely pretty scummy though.

 

[TheSlySoul]

It was a rough day on GAF...

Ha ha, it is hard to like Nintendo when they do so much stupid stuff.
$250 3DS was so bad.

Spoiler

I honestly am not intending to point out so many things that relate 3DS to PS3.

 

[Instro]

So how much is a Nintendo branded adaptor lol.

 

[Toxi]

According to Nintendo, it was a measure designed to save costs for consumers who may already own a 3DS or DSi system. According to Nintendo, "New Nintendo 3DS XL uses the same AC adapter as any Nintendo 3DS or Nintendo DSi system. Rather than raise cost of New Nintendo 3DS XL by charging consumers for a component they may already own, we are giving them the option to only buy if they need an AC adapter."

Nintendo seems to be forgetting that their die-hard audience is only a small percentage of the potential audience for a game system. It's a worrisome trend.

 

[Various Artists]

Weak excuse. They just want to charge extra. I hope this thing dies in a fire. People rationalizing from other countries should have been in a bigger uproar to stop this practice earlier.

 

[Vanillalite]

Ha ha, it is hard to like Nintendo when they do so much stupid stuff.
$250 3DS was so bad.

$200 4 years later isn't much better...

 

[tsumineko]

"You can't prove it" isn't really a proper rebuttal. In fact, Nintendo is relying exactly on the consumer not know exactly how little the chargers cost to say hollow PR like this.

You don't need "proof" to know that a simple AC charger doesn't cost anywhere near the $15 MSRP they're charging for. Power chargers are literally everywhere and have been for decades. It's extremely common knowledge that charging cables are only proprietary if the manufacturer wants to squeeze more dollars out of consumers. Every other company who isn't a cheap bastard simply makes their chargers non-proprietary. Through the most basic logic you can also easily tell that every other hardware manufacturer is including charging cables and USB-to-AC plug adapters because they really cost nothing to make. At this point that's not a cost that anyone takes into consideration.

Now, if you want to plug your ears and go "LALALA I CAN'T HEAR YOU CUZ YOU CAN'T PROVE IT", that's your prerogative, but that's you willfully ignoring reality and drinking the Nintendo Kool-Aid, it's not us making completely baseless assumptions.

And trying to convince me with conjecture isn't a proper rebuttal either. As I said, I'm not saying you're wrong, but you're harping on like you know actual facts, and you aren't presenting any. Nintendo have said they are selling a cheaper console without the adaptor. Fair enough.

 

[dhlt25]

at least when phone company don't include the charger they include a USB cable. Nintendo has no fucking excuse for this shit and won't be getting money from me for their new 3DS.

 

[Chindogg]

So how much is a Nintendo branded adaptor lol.

Seriously it's like $8.

 

[Vena]

I should've been more specific. I meant to say manufacturers of mobile hardware, and I do agree there's some corners of the world where manufacturers don't pack in a cable but at least they still use standard USB ports for charging their hardware.

I mean if we wanted to talk about all the corner-cutting in pack-ins we'd be here all day . "Batteries not included", for one.

Corners of the world? I bought several (ten, to be specific) monitors for our lab this past week and none of them came with any usable cables for actually using the damned monitor. They came with power cables and useless VGA cables. This isn't a rarity. Its incredibly standard practice from batteries, to HDMI cables, to memory cards. Heck, on the topic, our DSLR for our jerryrigged microscope didn't even come with an SD card, and thats a 1000$ purchase which is literally useless without the card.

Yes, it sucks that Nintendo decided to cut out a 5$ item from the price. Yes, its a stupid cost cutting decision. But hell if this thread isn't an absurd overreaction from everyone.

 

[TI82]

Ha ha, it is hard to like Nintendo when they do so much stupid stuff.
$250 3DS was so bad.

Spoiler

I honestly am not intending to point out so many things that relate 3DS to PS3.

$350 Wii U
* 32GB of Flash memory
* Nintendo Land
* Controller

 

[shadowsdarknes]

Can't see the problem here... That's a pretty reasonable explanation. The console would cost more if they included the adaptor as standard. Now you're saving money if you don't need the adaptor, or paying what it would have cost had they included the adaptor as standard if you buy the adaptor seperately.

Do you really think Nintendo would actually break their price point and charge you more for the adapter?

This is just Nintendo being cheap.
But hey, at least NOA knows they aren't expanding their market with this product.

 

[HardRojo]

Ok that makes more sense. I didn't see that post.

However some of you are going totally buck for a $8 AC Adapter. I realize that's shitty and a dumb decision, but it's more in the "meh whatever" territory than the "this company can fuck itself I hope it burns into obscurity" like some of these posts.

Also, equating the memory card backlash to this is laughable. Sony got shit because their cards are insanely expensive, and no one was actively hoping Vita would fail. Some cats in here are acting as if Iwata pissed in their faces and want the whole company to burn for it.

I'm just sitting here chuckling at the absurd overreactions to the whole situation and anyone shrugging their shoulders like me are being accused of "defending an anti-consumer practice" when in reality we're just too apathetic to care about $4-12.



Posts like this, for example.

I think we call can agree that no longer including the adapter is bullshit and sucks, but holy fuck the overreactions are insane.

Anti-consumer? Would you prefer if they charged you $220 and included it? Hell you can get one for $4 if you look around. Yet we're ok with Vita charging a virtual ton with memory sticks. We're ok with having HDMI cables missing from TV and monitor boxes. We're ok with day 1 DLC and patches.

But a $4-12 power adapter? Get the pitchforks and torches.



n3DS isn't a dead system?

So which one is it? Did Sony get shit or not?

 

[Corronchilejano]

So how much is a Nintendo branded adaptor lol.

https://store.nintendo.com/ng3/browse/productDetailColorSizePicker.jsp?productId=prod10489

10 bucks.

 

[Zen_Arcade]

Also, equating the memory card backlash to this is laughable. Sony got shit because their cards are insanely expensive, and no one was actively hoping Vita would fail. Some cats in here are acting as if Iwata pissed in their faces and want the whole company to burn for it.

The point you're not getting is that it's not about money. It's about the fact that they're making you buy something without all of the pieces to make it work. It's equatable to the Vita memory card situation because both companies left out pieces you need to make the device you just bought work.

Though I do agree that some people are going over board, I also think a lot of people are being reasonable in calling bullshit out when they see it. Especially with the response Nintendo gave to the backlash.

 

[Tigress]

Can't see the problem here... That's a pretty reasonable explanation. The console would cost more if they included the adaptor as standard. Now you're saving money if you don't need the adaptor, or paying what it would have cost had they included the adaptor as standard if you buy the adaptor seperately.

Dollars to donuts you're paying more if you have to buy the adaptor seperately. Marketing wise the price has to look good so they'd probably not increase it as much as what they charge for the adaptor seperately if they included it in the box.

But, since they don't include it in the box, there's no proof of that and they can claim that way you are saving that much money (and you aren't paying more if you have to buy it).

 

[Ninja Scooter]

Weak excuse. They just want to charge extra. I hope this thing dies in a fire. People rationalizing from other countries should have been in a bigger uproar to stop this practice earlier.

I think they just want to save a few cents on every unit they ship. It's cheap and tacky. It's a handheld device. It should come with the means to charge it. Mind boggling that people are excusing this.

 

[WrenchNinja]

Seriously it's like $8.

Great! Then the multi billion dollar company should easily be able to afford to include one!

 

[TheSlySoul]

Yes, it sucks that Nintendo decided to cut out a 5$ item from the price. Yes, its a stupid cost cutting decision. But hell if this thread isn't an absurd overreaction from everyone.

It is mostly calling out BS PR speech when they should go "we decided that bundling adapters was costing us money." Sure it is shitty, but at least they are honest.

The exact same thing happened with Ubisoft PR speech. We just want people to be honest for a change.

 

[Acquiescence]

If it's one thing Nintendo have always been good at, it's penny-pinching.

 

[Aeqvitas]

Is the charger proprietary? If so then that is some real bullshit, it is just gonna piss off any new consumers.

My friend has been bugging me to get a new DS next month, I've not used a handheld since the original gameboy, so it is safe to say I wouldn't have any chargers laying around. So now I am rethinking my possible purchase. I was interested for that steam punk game, but stupid decisions like this only alienate customers.

If it is just a mini-usb cable, yeah that is not as bad, but as an Apple user, I don't even have many of those laying around somewhere.

Imagine the outrage if consoles didn't come with power supplies because everyone "already has one."

 

[dose]

Like I said when they started doing this in Europe, fuck you Nintendo. What a ridiculous reason. Things break, and a lot of people don't already own 3DSs. Cheap ass Nintendo as usual sadly.

 

[Jack Scofield]

Watch Nintendo be Nintendo and sent out a tiny shipment of chargers. "We didn't anticipate the demand."

 

[Chindogg]

So which one is it? Did Sony get shit or not?

There's a difference between catching some hell and wishing the whole company would burn.

Would you like to continue to try and find reasons to refute my criticisms to this mob rally or should I leave you to continue lighting your torches?

Great! Then the multi billion dollar company should easily be able to afford to include one!

Totally agree. It's a dumb move. But I'm not wishing the company's death over it.

 

[Dreamwriter]

Nintendo have said they are selling a cheaper console without the adaptor. Fair enough.

But, they were already selling it with the adapter for the same price. So really, it's a stealth price increase. And the number of people who would "save" money from this are very small, since keeping the AC adapter from another system basically renders that system useless. You can't trade it in, sell it, give it to a relative (unless you live with them). So now that old 3DS or DS you have, you might as well toss it in the trash.

 

[ghibli99]

I don't want to be forced to pay extra money for something I already own. Anyone that needs an adapter can buy one. Those who don't, won't have to pay extra for something they have no use for.

Let's say you have a non-Lightning iPad. You skip the first Lightning generation, and decide to upgrade on the next. So you get it, but Apple decides that they will no longer sell iPads with the Lightning cable because well, most people have the first-gen Lightning one. But hey, you can buy one if you need it at retail. Pretty sure you wouldn't like that, no matter how cheap the cable. That's why so many people here are saying over and over that at its core, this isn't about money.

 

[Negator]

There's a difference between catching some hell and wishing the whole company would burn.

Would you like to continue to try and find reasons to refute my criticisms to this mob rally or should I leave you to continue lighting your torches?

I'll continue to light my torch and be angry, you can chuckle all fucking day and be a corporate apologist. Everyone wins.

 

[EatinOlives]

And trying to convince me with conjecture isn't a proper rebuttal either. As I said, I'm not saying you're wrong, but you're harping on like you know actual facts, and you aren't presenting any. Nintendo have said they are selling a cheaper console without the adaptor. Fair enough.

That's my point, it's not conjecture. We're not talking about patented trade secrets, it's a simple charger. Power chargers are everywhere. They've been around for decades, and everyone knows how much they cost to consumers and cost to manufacture.

Again, you're simply denying reality if you choose to not listen to any of it simply because you believe Nintendo's magical AC adapter is somehow a unique snowflake among the hundreds of chargers that have been made over the decades. If you just want to shout "conjecture!" repeatedly without any additional thought on the matter, though, you're perfectly welcome to do that.

Corners of the world? I bought several (ten, to be specific) monitors for our lab this past week and none of them came with any usable cables for actually using the damned monitor. They came with power cables and useless VGA cables. This isn't a rarity. Its incredibly standard practice from batteries, to HDMI cables, to memory cards. Heck, on the topic, our DSLR for our jerryrigged microscope didn't even come with an SD card, and thats a 1000$ purchase which is literally useless without the card.

Yes, it sucks that Nintendo decided to cut out a 5$ item from the price. Yes, its a stupid cost cutting decision. But hell if this thread isn't an absurd overreaction from everyone.

I'm talking about mobile devices, dude, I already said that in the very post you're quoting. For mobile devices, there are corners of the world where cables for charging are not packed in. I didn't aim that statement about monitors.

 

[Prine]

Horrible excuse Nintendo, extemely embarasing .

 

[arevin01]

Nintendo continues to make baffling business decisions.

 

[Rocky]

And trying to convince me with conjecture isn't a proper rebuttal either. As I said, I'm not saying you're wrong, but you're harping on like you know actual facts, and you aren't presenting any. Nintendo have said they are selling a cheaper console without the adaptor. Fair enough.

And if they told you wolverines made good housepets, would you believe them?

 

[HardRojo]

There's a difference between catching some hell and wishing the whole company would burn.

Would you like to continue to try and find reasons to refute my criticisms to this mob rally or should I leave you to continue lighting your torches?



Totally agree. It's a dumb move. But I'm not wishing the company's death over it.

While I agree some people are overreacting and wishing Nintendo went down because of this, I can't understand people trying to justify this somehow and making it look like a lighter issue in front of shit other companies have pulled. People were very vocal about MS and the XBO DRM, people were also vocal about the Vita expensive cards, now it's Nintendo and a stupid decision so let's discuss that and as I already said, I agree there are some overreactions here and there.

Watch Nintendo be Nintendo and sent out a tiny shipment of chargers. "We didn't anticipate the demand."

I chuckled... then I felt somewhat sad inside because it's a very likely scenario.

 

[Pikma]

Not only scummy but also seems borderline illegal.

Hahaha, it's shitty for sure, but illegal? Don't be ridiculous.

 

[Jedi2016]

Does it come with the dock? The pre-order pictures I've seen show a dock, but don't mention it as "included with system" in the summary.

 

[jblank83]

Is the charger proprietary? If so then that is some real bullshit, it is just gonna piss off any new consumers

It's proprietary in that the connector only fits the 3DS.

There are 3rd party cables, though.

 

[Ninja Scooter]

Let's say you have a non-Lightning iPad. You skip the first Lightning generation, and decide to upgrade on the next. So you get it, but Apple decides that they will no longer sell iPads with the Lightning cable because well, most people have the first-gen Lightning one. But hey, you can buy one if you need it at retail. Pretty sure you wouldn't like that, no matter how cheap the cable. That's why so many people here are saying over and over that at its core, this isn't about money.

the money excuse doesn't fly either because as cheap as they are for an individual consumer, they are THAT much cheaper for a billion dollar corporation like Nintendo who is going to be getting them in bulk by the hundreds of thousands. If you are going to call a consumer "cheap" for balking over a $4-10 cable, what does that say about Nintendo?

 

[Petrae]

That "statement" is the biggest pile of shit since the one in Jurassic Park.

"There's no reason to be upset. We're doing everyone a favor! (What? You don't have a charger already? That's too bad. Now move along.)"

I'd almost rather hear the truth:

"We have previously discontinued the practice of including free chargers with our handhelds in other territories, and it was time for the USA to get off of the gravy train and pay their own way. It's only $10 extra, the lousy cheapskates."

 

[trogdorddragon]

I don't own a 3DS but was considering adopting the platform with the new 3Ds XL. Obviously I don't have a charger.

Well, I guess fuck you Nintendo. Forget it.

Buying an adapter would make the 3ds hardware cost MORE than a vita?! Lol

Forget it.

 

[iMax]

Then take a step back and imagine how it would affect the average consumer.

A lot of iPhone users upgrade from previous iterations. Doubt it'd bother them at all, especially those renewing their contracts around now from their iPhone 5. Those who need a cable can always buy one. No point paying for something you don't want or need.

But this is a separate debate. In the case of the 3DS, we're talking about a proprietary cable. Not really comparable.

 

[Starwolf_UK]

Is the charger proprietary? If so then that is some real bullshit, it is just gonna piss off any new consumers.

Proprietary as in exact same one as the DSi,DSi XL,3DS, 3DS XL and 2DS used (i,.e, previous 5 systems used). It is a shame as they could have used this new system as an perfect time to move to USB like everyone else is doing. Nintendo do use USB on the Wii U Pro controllers (and provide cables) so it isn't like they're ignorant.

Great! Then the multi billion dollar company should easily be able to afford to include one!

That same company has been posting losses for the majority of the past few years...

 

[:Motorbass]

Let's say you have a non-Lightning iPad. You skip the first Lightning generation, and decide to upgrade on the next. So you get it, but Apple decides that they will no longer sell iPads with the Lightning cable because well, most people have the first-gen Lightning one. But hey, you can buy one if you need it at retail. Pretty sure you wouldn't like that, no matter how cheap the cable. That's why so many people here are saying over and over that at its core, this isn't about money.

There is a difference between "I don't like it" and "OMG I REALLY REALLY WANTED TO BUY THE SYSTEM AND PLAY THE GAMES - BUT NOW... NEVER NINTENDO AGAIN"

And the iPad stuff is even worse, because it renders some of the accessories useless because they don't fit anymore size wise.

 

[TheSlySoul]

Let's say you have a non-Lightning iPad. You skip the first Lightning generation, and decide to upgrade on the next. So you get it, but Apple decides that they will no longer sell iPads with the Lightning cable because well, most people have the first-gen Lightning one. But hey, you can buy one if you need it at retail. Pretty sure you wouldn't like that, no matter how cheap the cable. That's why so many people here are saying over and over that at its core, this isn't about money.

Exactly on point.
This is exactly what Nintendo is doing. Sure you may having Lightning cables around everywhere and sure you may find it on Amazon for $2 (which that one voids the warrenty, oops), but to miss the point of why people are upset is dumbfounding.

There is a difference between "I don't like it" and "OMG I REALLY REALLY WANTED TO BUY THE SYSTEM AND PLAY THE GAMES - BUT NOW... NEVER NINTENDO AGAIN"

And the iPad stuff is even worse, because it renders some of the accessories useless because they don't fit anymore size wise.

None of your 3DS grips or power packs will work on the newest 3DS. So it is exactly like the iPad.